New court designed to help veterans in trouble

Jesse Nash didn't take his meds, and after a confrontation he was charged with throwing a missile into a dwelling, aggravated battery, criminal mischief and indecent exposure.

But Nash, 54, won't just serve a simple jail or probation sentence. As a veteran with mental health problems, he likely will be channeled into a counseling or treatment program as well. He was one of the first three defendants whose cases were called Monday at the inaugural session of Broward County's new Veterans' Treatment Court.

County Judge Edward H. Merrigan Jr., specially assigned to hear felony as well as misdemeanor cases, sent Nash and another defendant to a Veterans Administration psychologist for evaluation.

"I want to see what additional programs he may be eligible for under the V.A.," Merrigan said.

More than 103,000 veterans live in Broward. According to 2011 census figures, 115,000 live in Palm Beach County, the most in the state.

Based in part on a similar veterans' court in West Palm Beach, the new venue is designed to make treatment or counseling available to veterans, instead of just shunting them off to jail.

The Veterans' Court, similar to mental health court or drug court, is for vets whose mental or substance abuse problems can be directly linked to their service. Defendants still will pay the full price of their crimes, but they also will undergo treatment or counseling, often as part of their sentence.

The judge will follow up on a defendant's progress through reports from caregivers at the Veterans Administration, probation services or corrections agencies.

"The goal is to provide treatment to those who served our country and now find themselves in difficult circumstances," said Chief Judge Peter Weinstein, a captain in the Army Reserves who authorized the new court.

"I think we can speak the same language," Merrigan, who is a lieutenant colonel in the Army Reserve, said of the veterans who appear before him. But, "I don't think I'm going to be a pushover simply because of my veteran status."

"I can tailor a sentence with what services they need. I'm going to give them the opportunity to help themselves," Merrigan said. "They're getting services that they earned and that they deserve."

Those services include one-on-one supervision by the judge, random drug and alcohol testing, intensive probation supervision, medication monitoring and housing assistance. The court will meet monthly or weekly, depending on how many veterans are directed to its docket.

Nash's attorney, Lonworth Butler, said his client hadn't been taking his medications when he acted belligerently at an assisted living facility in October 2009.

"You've got so many vets with issues. They may be accused of certain offenses, but underlying that is a lot of them need a variety of treatment," he said.

Nash, Butler said, is a natural fit for Veterans' Court. "I think this is the appropriate place of him," he said.

Another of Monday's defendants was Raymond Black, 66, a disabled Army and Vietnam War veteran charged with several offenses stemming from an alcohol-related accident in October, his lawyer, Keith Seltzer, said.

"He hopes this will provide him with a good resolution," Seltzer said. "This is the prototypical court that needs to be available to vets."